Judging from the other comments posted thus far, I don't think you're going to find any useful answers here. The following link seems a lot more informative:

Judging from the other comments posted thus far, I don't think you're going to find any useful answers here. The following link seems a lot more informative: https://www.quora.com/Is-there-any-legal-way-for-international-students-on-F-1-visas-to-incorporate-and-run-their-own-startup-while-maintaining-the-F-1-visa-status https://www.quora.com/Is-there-any-legal-way-for-internation... If I had to guess: The OPT is extremely flexible - I know of people who literally sat at home unemployed the whole time. So I suspect it should allow you to found a company as well. If that goes well, and if you're able to raise VC funding, that should allow your startup to then hire you on a H1B, or extend your OPT for an additional 1.5 years. But my main advise is to do a variety of google searches around the above keywords. That should give you a better idea of what your potential options are. Once you understand the problem space a little more clearly, find an immigration lawyer who's willing to do a consultation for ~$200/hour, and have them give you specific legal advise for your situation. Good luck.